A 12-member committee of citizens has been formed to advise the Pierce County Council on the management of channel migration zones in Pierce County. The Channel Migration Zone Citizen Advisory Committee is responsible for evaluating and making recommendations on mapping, development standards, notification processes and other related issues in CMZ areas. The group will complete their recommendations by Aug. 31, 2009.

Members of the advisory committee include affected landowners, watershed managers, the environmental community and other interests. The group is supported by Pierce County Surface Water Management.

Monthly meetings are being held to facilitate understanding and discussion of CMZ management issues. Meetings are scheduled for the first Wednesday of every month, 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Pierce County Central Maintenance Facility in Spanaway. The public is invited to attend.

The channel migration zone is the area within the floodplain where the current active river channel is likely to move in the foreseeable future. Because rivers may change course over time, CMZs must be managed carefully to reduce flood hazards and property losses and to reduce the need for expensive shoreline stabilization. One part of managing these areas is establishment of regulations for when, where and how development can occur in CMZs.

Currently, Pierce County’s regulations prohibit new development and limit improvements to existing structures in these high risk areas.

Additional information about this effort, including agendas and other materials, is available at http://www.piercecountywa.org/cmz